Kukla's Korner Hockey

In rinks around the NHL this week, ice technicians are lacing up the league's newly-configured goals in advance of training camp. To hear the new dimensions is to shrug. Four inches? Meh. But to put an old goal side by side with a new goal is to be elightened.

The NHL is seeking a boost to scoring, and these subtle changes could make a big difference for the best players in the world.

"You're probably going to notice it a lot on wrap-arounds," said former NHL player Chris Clark, now the Blue Jackets' director of player development. "Those times when the goaltender gets his leg across just in time to cover the other post? Those might be goals now.

"The players haven't seen them yet. The goaltenders haven't played with them yet. But it's going to take some getting used to."